BATH

A long-awaited fix for a sewerage problem along Willow Street will begin to be addressed this month.

The city will replace crumbling pipes along the railroad tracks, mostly in the railroad’s right of way, on land bordering residents of Willow, Middle, and Pearl streets between Pearl and North streets.

The old pipes collected both storm water and sewerage, and in strong rain events, the pipes backed up, spilling sewerage into basements and back yards.

In addition to the structural problem, erosion left some of the aging pipes exposed, and this led to cracking and breaking.

The goal for the first phase of this project is to isolate the sewerage from the storm water.

The broken sections of clay pipe will be replaced with plastic pipe through a process by which the new pipe will be threaded through the old broken ones, bursting the pipes. Then, a valve will allow storm water to enter the pipe, but when the amount of storm water overwhelms the system, the valve will not allow water in the pipe, whether it is storm water or sewerage, to back out of the pipe.

To reach Willow Street, the contractor will bore under the railroad tracks and lay new pipe through one of the yards on Willow Street.

To aid somewhat with the flooding on Willow Street, additional catch basins will be added beneath the street. However, it is likely that in very strong storms, water will continue to pool on the street and in yards, and collect in basements along Willow, which is a very low-lying area.

The ultimate fix — a pumping station that would force water out of the Willow Street basin and into storm water systems on Washington Street and beyond — is estimated at $1.5 million. Funding for a pumping station has not yet been approved by City Council.

The Willow Street project was funded in part initially by a low-interest state revolving loan from the Maine Bond Bank and administered by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection.

The loan will be repaid by a bond the City Council authorized July 9, 2012.

Sealed bids were invited on Aug. 14. The low bid, by St. Laurent and Son of Lewiston, was $654,705, and was accepted by City Council on Sept. 4.

The project is scheduled to begin by Sept. 26, weather permitting, and all pipe work is expected to be completed by early November. Landscaping work, paving of Willow Street, and sidewalk repair will be completed in the spring of 2014.

The project is expected to cause limited delays on North, Willow and Pearl streets during specific times when excavation is required to cross the streets.

Inquiries can be forwarded to Peter Owen, Bath Public Works director, at 443-8357.

¦ THE PROJECT is scheduled to begin by Sept. 26, weather permitting, and all pipe work is expected to be completed by early November. Landscaping work, paving of Willow Street, and sidewalk repair will be completed in the spring of 2014.

¦ INQUIRIES CAN BE forwarded to Peter Owen, Bath Public Works director, at 443- 8357.